Friends Provident

Infobox_Company
company_name = Friends Provident plc
company_
company_type = Public (lse|FP.)
company_slogan =
foundation = 1832
location = London, England, UK
key_people = Adrian Montague (Chairman), Trevor Matthews, (Group Chief Executive)
num_employees = |Around 6,000 worldwide industry = Financial Services
products = Insurance, Inheritance tax products, Investment Management Pensions
revenue = £2,506 million (2007)
operating_income=£(113) million (2007)
net_income =£(70) million (2007)
homepage = [http://www.fp.com/ www.fp.com]

Friends Provident plc (lse|FP.) manages a life assurance business mainly based in the United Kingdom and with offices throughout the world. It is a member of the FTSE 100 Index.

The head office is now located at 100 Wood Street in London. The registered office is at Pixham End, Dorking in Surrey. It is a member of the Association of British Insurers and is regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

History

The Company was founded by Samuel Tuke and Joseph Rowntree, both Quakers, in 1832 in Bradford as the "Friends Provident Institution". [Milligan's Biographical dictionary of British Quakers in commerce and industry page 581. This refers to a history of the company: "Friends for life" by D. Tregonning and H. Cockrell (1982).] In 1854 it became a mutual life assurance company. In 1918 it acquired Century Insurance and in 1926 it bought Liverpool Marine & General Insurance. [ [http://www.friendsprovident.co.uk/assets/fp/aboutus/1918_1945.html Friends Provident History 1918-1945] ]

In 1986 it merged with UK Provident. [http://www.friendsprovident.co.uk/assets/fp/aboutus/1980_1999.html Friends Provident History 1980-1999] ] In 1992 it became a foundation partner in the Eureko Alliance in association with AVCB (The Netherlands), Topdanmark (Denmark) and Wasa (Sweden). As part of this alliance, Friends Provident passed all of its then non UK subsidiaries (primarily in Australia and Canada) into Eureko. [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5557/is_199204/ai_n21975961 Four European Insurers form Eureko] ]

In 1993 it acquired the UK operations of National Mutual of Australia and in 1998 it acquired London & Manchester Assurance.

In July 2001 it went through a process or demutualisation and was first listed on the London Stock Exchange. [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010607/ai_n14390421 Friends Provident backs IPO plan] ]

On January 21, 2008 JC Flowers made a bid of £4bn (175p per share) as an informal offer for the company [ [http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article3221929.ece JC Flowers in £4bn bid for troubled Friends Provident] , The Times, January 21, 2008] .

Operations

The UK Life and Pensions business markets a range of life protection, income protection, pensions and investment products for individual customers and corporate clients throughout the UK. [http://www88.friendsprovident.com/common_ss/layouts/consumerSubSectionLayout.jhtml?pageId=consumer%2FSitePageSimple%3Aprotection_home# Friends Provident Protection] ]

The International Life and Pensions business operates throughout Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, and incorporates the Luxemburg based company Lombard International who specialise in providing life assurance based estate planning solutions.

The Asset Management business - F&C Asset Management plc - manages funds and markets a range of investment products both to personal and institutional customers. [ [http://www88.friendsprovident.com/fund_centre/index.jhtml Friends Provident Funds] ]

Ethical stance

Friends Provident prides itself on its ethical stance. It was the first investment house to offer a fully ethical investment fund called the Stewardship fund [ [http://www.cafonline.org/default.aspx?Page=14741 Charities Aid Foundation article on the Stewardship Fund.] ] .

Members of the Friends Provident Group

* "Friends Provident Life and Pension Limited" - Provides life, pension and investment services within the UK
* "Friends Provident Life Assurance Limited" - Provides life and investment services worldwide under English and Guernsey law.
* "Friends Provident International Limited" - Formerly Royal and Sun Alliance International but was taken over in 2003. Provides life and investment services worldwide and operates under the law of the Isle of Man.
* "F&C Asset Management plc" - Provides asset management services for retail and institutional investors including investment management of "in-house" Friends Provident life and pension funds.
* "Lombard International Insurance S.A." - Acquired in 2005, providers of high-end Investment and life cover. Inventors and developers of the privatbancassurance concept. Lombard is based in Luxembourg and deals globally.

Offices

Friends Provident has large offices in a number of locations including Manchester, Clyst St. Mary in Exeter, Preston and Dorking, and is the second largest employer in Salisbury. There are also a few smaller area offices such as those in Sale, Greater Manchester and Preston.

Internationally Friends Provident has offices in Luxembourg, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai.

ports sponsorships

Friends Provident has signed a three year deal to sponsor the domestic one-day cricket competition, The Friends Provident Trophy. [ [http://www.thepca.co.uk/Friends_Provident_Announced_As_Trophy_Sponsor_-_08022007.html Professional Cricketers Association] ]

Friends Provident sponsored Southampton F.C. and help finance the building of St Mary's Stadium, until 2006. [ [http://www.mad.co.uk/Logon/ArticleLogon.aspx?uiArticleID=4dde991f-6ccc-4b8e-88df-65d7878abddc&uiNavigationItemID=&uiPageID=af417f3e-e0de-4486-b1dc-7e1568872fec&PipelinedPage=/Main/Regions/TheSouth/Articles/4dde991f6ccc4b8e88df65d7878abddc/Flybe-sponsors-Southampton-FC.html&PipelinedQueryString=uiArticleID%3d4dde991f-6ccc-4b8e-88df-65d7878abddc%26uiNavigationItemID%3d15d58838-3e04-417d-a0bc-84cc063c6cdc%26 Flybe sponsors Southampton] ]

External links

* [http://www.friendsprovident.co.uk/ Official UK site]
* [http://www.friendsprovident.com/sri/ Official Socially Responsible Investment site]
* [http://www.lombard.lu/home.html Lombard's official site]
* [http://www.fandc.com F & C official site]
* [http://www.fpinternational.com International site]
* [http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=FP.L Yahoo profile]
* [http://www.friendsprovident.co.uk/cricket Cricket Micro site]

References